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Orcutt opposed to
record-spending budget,
censorship by House majority
Tax policy leader 'outraged' by rejects of
proposed Truth-in-Budgeting study
Rep. Ed Orcutt
said today’s party-line passage of the House Democrats’ $27.3 billion
state budget was made worse by Thursday’s Democrat censorship of
Republicans’ written public statements about the budget. He also
questioned why the majority party passed up an easy opportunity to look
at making the budget process more open and transparent.
“A few weeks ago the House majority approved spending $750,000 to review
tax exemptions through House Bill 1069, reviews that already happen
through our policy committees. But today it refuses to spend just
$50,000 to look at how we spend billions upon billions of taxpayer
dollars the state collects? That’s an outrage.”
Orcutt’s concern extends to the censorship seen Thursday from the
Democrat-selected chief clerk of the House, who prohibited Republican
representatives from including certain words and phrases in their news
releases about the budget.
“I’m not surprised the majority party wanted to regulate our speech. It
has regulated most everything in this state,” Orcutt said. “But if they
are proud to vote to raise taxes and spend a record amount of money,
don’t they want citizens to know what they did? I like to look for ways
to protect taxpayers, to be a good steward of their money. And if the
majority party wants to describe me that way in a press release, I’m not
ashamed.
“Adding to the tax-and-spend budget the Democrats passed last year, this
is a spend-and-spend-and-spend budget. The majority party is spending
more than 99 percent of the tax money available and sending our state on
a course toward another tax increase – so how can it call this a
‘sustainable’ and ‘responsible’ and ‘transparent’ and ‘great’ budget?”
said Orcutt, R-Kalama. “It’s not a great budget – it’s a great BIG
budget, and it’s probably going to put the state treasury in a great big
hole.
“This budget proves that the only safe place for a surplus is in the
hands of the taxpayers.”
The fact that Democrats introduced their budget proposal Tuesday, passed
it on a party-line committee vote Wednesday and brought it before the
full House on Friday proves the need for the Truth-in-Budgeting study
proposed by Republicans as a budget amendment.
“I spoke in favor of studying possible improvements to the budget
process: creating a constitutionally protected spending limit, creating
a constitutionally protected reserve, requiring a 60 percent vote to
raise taxes, setting a week aside to allow a closer look at budget
proposals, and eliminating the use of dedicated funds. But the majority
party said no, we don’t need a study,” said Orcutt, who is tax policy
leader for House Republicans.
“Last year the majority party raised taxes by $480 million. This year it
wants to give back $2.5 million in tax incentives. Out of a $1.6 billion
ending fund balance the majority is giving $2.5 million back to the
taxpayers. That’s like you giving me $640 and me giving you a dollar
back. That’s the deal this budget makes with the taxpayers.”
# # #
For more information, contact:
Brendon Wold, Public
Information Officer: (360) 786-7698
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